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The Kurds are an ethnic Iranian group in the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a contiguous area spanning adjacent parts of modern-day Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, a geo-cultural region often referred to as 'Kurdistan'. The Kurds have ethnically diverse origins. They are culturally and linguistically closely related to the Iranian peoples and, as a result, are often themselves classified as an Iranian people. The Kurdish languages form a subgroup of the Northwestern Iranian languages.<br/><br/> The Kurds number about 40 million, the majority living in West Asia, including significant Kurdish diaspora communities in the cities of western Turkey outside of Kurdistan. A recent Kurdish diaspora has developed in Western countries, primarily in Germany. The Kurds are in the majority in the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan and in the autonomous region of Syrian Kurdistan and are a significant minority group in the neighboring countries Turkey and Iran, where Kurdish nationalist movements continue to pursue autonomy.
The kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger or sword most strongly associated with the culture of Indonesia, but also indigenous to Malaysia, Southern Thailand and Brunei. It is known as kalis in the southern Philippines. The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade (luk), but many have straight blades as well. The numbers of luks is always odd numbered, ranged from three to thirteen waves, however there is also luks that reach 29. Kris can be divided into three parts: bilah (blade), hulu (hilt), and warangka (sheath). These parts of kris are the object of art, often carved in meticulous details and made from various materials; metal, precious rare types of wood to gold or ivory. A kris' aesthetic value covers the dhapur (the form and design of the blade, with around 150 variants), the pamor (the pattern of metal alloy decoration on the blade, with around 60 variants), and tangguh referring to the age and origin of a kris.<br/><br/> Both a weapon and spiritual object, kris are often considered to have an essence or presence, often considered to possess magical powers, with some blades possessing good luck and others possessing bad. Krises are used for display, as talismans with magical powers, weapons, sanctified heirloom (pusaka), auxiliary equipment for court soldiers, as an accessory for ceremonial dress, an indicator of social status, a symbol of heroism, etc. Legendary krisses that possess supernatural power and extraordinary ability were mentioned in traditional folktales, such as the krisses of Mpu Gandring, Taming Sari, and Setan Kober.<br/><br/> It is believed that the earliest kris prototype can be traced to Dong Son bronze culture in Vietnam circa 300 BC that spread to other parts of Southeast Asia. Another theory is that the kris was based on daggers from India. Some of the most famous renderings of a kris appear on the bas-reliefs of Borobudur (825 CE) and Prambanan temple (850 CE). However from Raffles' (1817) study of the Candi Sukuh that the kris recognized today came into existence around 1361 CE in the kingdom of Majapahit, East Java.
Herāt (Pashto / Persian: هرات‎) is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan. The city is linked with Kandahar and Mazar-e-Sharif via highway 1 or the ring road that stretches around the country. It is also linked to the city of Mashad in Iran through the border town of Islam Qala.<br/><br/> Situated in a fertile area, Herāt dates back to the Avestan times and was traditionally known for its wine. The city has a number of historic sites, including the Herat Citadel and the Mosallah Complex. During the Middle Ages Herāt became one of the important cities of Khorasan, as it was known as the Pearl of Khorasan. In 1717, the city was captured by the Pashtuns and remained under Pashtun control until the Hotaki dynasty was defeated by the Afsharids in 1736.<br/><br/> After Nadir Shah's death, Herat became part of the Durrani Empire in 1747. It saw some actions during the 19th century Anglo-Afghan wars. Much of the city has been spared from destructions that occurred in other cities of Afghanistan during the post-1979 Russian and American wars.
Lithograph from 'Afghaunistan' by Lieutenant James Rattray (1841). The Kohistani is Mir Alam, formerly one of a band of noted robbers on the road to Turkestan, north-west of Begram. Rattray wrote: 'Coistaun has always been remarkable for the war-like character of its inhabitants, who average some forty thousand families famous for the efficiency and excellence of their Pyadas (foot-soldiery). As light infantry they are unrivalled, and from their numbers and determined courage, are of considerable importance in the event of any revolution in which they may take part'.<br/><br/> The robber chief Hassan secretly and daringly accosted the British envoy William McNaghten and offered to bring him Dost Mohammmed's head in return for a large amount of money. Although this offer was hastily turned down, Hassan and his men were later enrolled among the infantry escort of Rattray's brother. Giving up their precarious livelihood, they became most efficient soldiers.<br/><br/> Mir Alam carries a 'juzzail', a type of large heavy rifle. Afghan snipers were expert marksmen and their juzzails fired roughened bullets, long iron nails or even pebbles over a range of some 250 metres. The Afghans could fling the large rifles across their shoulders as if they were feathers and spring nimbly from rock to rock. They loved to decorate their rifles: Rattray writes of finding one adorned with human teeth.
Albrecht Dürer (21 May 1471 – 6 April 1528) was a German painter, printmaker and theorist from Nuremberg. His prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, and he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance ever since. Dürer's introduction of classical motifs into Northern art, through his knowledge of Italian artists and German humanists, have secured his reputation as one of the most important figures of the Northern Renaissance. This is reinforced by his theoretical treatises, which involve principles of mathematics, perspective and ideal proportions.
Seppuku (切腹, 'stomach-cutting') is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honour code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honour rather than fall into the hands of their enemies (and likely suffer torture), or as a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses, or performed for other reasons that had brought shame to them.<br/><br/> The ceremonial disembowelment, which is usually part of a more elaborate ritual and performed in front of spectators, consists of plunging a short blade, traditionally a tantō, into the abdomen and moving the blade from left to right in a slicing motion
A Sarmatian golden dagger and scabbard studded with turquoise and carnelian, 1st century CE, from Datschi Kurgan, near Rostov. Azov Museum. Image released to the press in 2009.<br/><br/> The Scythians were an ancient Iranian people of horse-riding nomadic pastoralists who throughout Classical Antiquity dominated the Pontic-Caspian steppe, known at the time as Scythia. By Late Antiquity the closely-related Sarmatians came to dominate the Scythians in the west.
Semar is a character in Javanese mythology who frequently appears in wayang shadow plays. He is one of the punokawan (clowns), but is in fact divine and very wise. He is the dhanyang (guardian spirit) of Java, and is regarded by some as the most sacred figure of the kotak (wayang set). He is said to be the god Sang Hyang Ismaya in human form.
Rhinoceros horns, unlike those of other horned mammals, consist of keratin only and lack a bony core, such as bovine horns. Rhinoceros horns are used in traditional Asian medicine, and for dagger handles in Yemen and Oman. One repeated misconception is that rhinoceros horn in powdered form is used as an aphrodisiac in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It is, in fact, prescribed for fevers and convulsions. China has signed the CITES treaty however. To prevent poaching, in certain areas, rhinos have been tranquilized and their horns removed.
The Sa Huỳnh culture (Vietnamese: Văn hóa Sa Huỳnh) was a culture in central and southern Vietnam that flourished between c. 1000 BCE and 200 CE. Archaeological sites from the culture have been discovered from the Mekong Delta to just south of the Tonkin region. The Sa Huynh people were most likely the predecessors of the Cham people, the founders of the kingdom of Champa.<br/><br/> The site at Sa Huynh was discovered in 1909. Sa Huynh sites were rich in locally-worked iron artefacts, typified by axes, swords, spearheads, knives and sickles. In contrast, bronze artefacts were dominant in the Dong Son culture sites found in northern Vietnam and elsewhere in mainland Southeast Asia.<br/><br/> The Sa Huynh culture cremated adults and buried them in jars covered with lids, a practice unique to the culture. Ritually broken offerings usually accompanied the jar burials. The culture is also typified by its unique ear ornaments featuring two-headed animals. The ornaments were commonly made from jade (nephrite), but also made from glass. Bead ornaments were also commonly found in Sa Huynh burials, most commonly made from glass.<br/><br/> The Sa Huynh culture showed evidence of an extensive trade network. Sa Huynh beads were made from glass, carnelian, agate, olivine, zircon, gold and garnet; most of these materials were not local to the region, and were most likely imported. Han Dynasty-styled bronze mirrors were also found in Sa Huynh sites. Conversely, Sa Huynh produced ear ornaments have been found in archaeological sites in Central Thailand, Taiwan (Orchid Island), and the Philippines (Palawan).
Đông Sơn was a prehistoric Bronze Age culture in Vietnam centered on the Red River Valley of northern Vietnam. At this time the first Vietnamese kingdoms of Văn Lang and Âu Lạc appeared. Its influence flourished in other neighbouring parts of Southeast Asia from about 500 BCE to 100 CE.
The kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger most strongly associated with the culture of Indonesia, but also indigenous to Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei. It is known as kalis in the southern Philippines. The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade, but in the past, most had straight blades.<br/><br/> Established by the Institute for Southern Thai Studies in 1991, this unusually good museum, set in an attractive series of Thai sala-type buildings, features a library (mainly in Thai) on southern Thai culture, and a well-documented series of exhibits on southern culture including nang talung shadow puppets, musical instruments, textiles, basketry, household artifacts, fishing equipment, jewellery and weapons. There is also a suan yaa samunprai or natural herb and medicinal garden in the well-tended grounds
The kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger most strongly associated with the culture of Indonesia, but also indigenous to Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei. It is known as kalis in the southern Philippines. The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade, but in the past, most had straight blades.<br/><br/> Established by the Institute for Southern Thai Studies in 1991, this unusually good museum, set in an attractive series of Thai sala-type buildings, features a library (mainly in Thai) on southern Thai culture, and a well-documented series of exhibits on southern culture including nang talung shadow puppets, musical instruments, textiles, basketry, household artifacts, fishing equipment, jewellery and weapons. There is also a suan yaa samunprai or natural herb and medicinal garden in the well-tended grounds